There are probably hundreds of churches named after the Sacred Heart throughout the nation, but one has a track record that is matchless. As of this year, Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church in Lake Charles, Louisiana, has produced a remarkable three African-American bishops.
Harold R. Perry became the first openly Black Catholic bishop in the United States when he was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of New Orleans in 1966. The second African-American prelate from Sacred Heart was Leonard Olivier, named an Auxiliary Bishop of Washington in 1988.
On Tuesday, July 7, Fr Robert Boxie III will be consecrated as an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Washington. At a press conference announcing the appointment, Boxie offered this observation:
“This appointment represents something much bigger than me. It is an acknowledgment of the community where I come from, the community that has formed me in the faith,ate especially my family and my home parish of Sacred Heart.”
Nate Tinner-Williams
One thing that makes Sacred Heart unique is that the name came ahead of the church itself. The school was established in 1908, 11 years before the parish. It is of more than passing interest that the founders of the school included Frank Perry and James Olivier, whose sons would eventually become bishops.
The larger founding group was made up of visionary leaders who understood that education fueled economic and social mobility. Against seemingly insuperable odds, they were determined to create a better life for their children and future generations. At the time of the school’s founding, Louisiana’s average annual per capita expenditure for White children was $16.44 and only $1.81 for Black pupils.
Undeterred by racial inequities, the school’s founders were aided significantly by the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, also known as the Holy Ghost Fathers, as well as by St. Katharine Drexel and her Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament. Both religious orders were invaluable in propelling Sacred Heart School to the top ranks in Louisiana, as were its first two African-American lay teachers, Eleanor Figaro and Mary “Tulla” Ryan.
Before Black Catholics in Lake Charles built their own church, they gathered each Sunday at the school and walked two miles to sit in segregated pews at the back of the all-White Immaculate Conception Church downtown. Later, as their own church and school grew, the parishioners—including carpenters, brick masons, and cement finishers—constructed worship facilities, often with funds raised by its members. The expanded footprint enabled Sacred Heart School and Church to fulfill the vision of its founders.
This is the essence of faith, the substance of things hoped for, that Bishop-elect Boxie cites as central to his formation. The school and church would eventually produce bishops, priests, women religious, and countless noteworthy achievers. They include:
- Sr Mary Roger Thibodeaux, one of the first African Americans to join the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament. Their founder, St. Katherine, founded numerous Black Catholic schools across the country, including Xavier University of Louisiana.
- More than a dozen other women religious and priests, including the Divine Word priest Jerome LeDoux and his brother, Fr Louis Verlin LeDoux of Lafayette.
- Alvin J. Boutte Sr., a co-founder of Independence Bank of Chicago.
- Retired Col. Anthony J. Polk, who after a distinguished military career served as an executive for the American Red Cross.
- Allen Broussard, the first African American to serve on the California Supreme Court.
A graduate of the University of California, Berkeley and its law school, Broussard once had this to say about Sacred Heart:
“Making it work for me (at UC Berkeley) was a very large transition—from a small Catholic school to a five-thousand person campus. My point is simply that that little school was giving us a good education. The Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament were the order that basically ran the school and taught us in the school. And they gave us a good fundamental education.”
The Louisiana Trust for Historic Preservation listed Sacred Heart Church in 2023 as one of the state's Most Endangered Places due to hurricane damage.
The Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament led the school, which closed in 2012, while the Spiritans oversaw the parish. During most of my years at the school, the pastor, Fr Clement Roach, gave each student their report card. Every six weeks, cards were handed out and taken home to be signed by parents and returned the next day. After distributing the cards, Roach gave brief remarks and admonished the students to “work hard, pray hard, and play hard”—words that resonate with me to this day.
Sacred Heart School and Church complemented each other and created a community of faith and high expectations. Bishop-Elect Boxie is a sterling example of what the founders envisioned when the school and church were established more than a century ago.
We salute him and all alums of this prestigious school. Their exemplary leadership and achievements honor the memory of the school’s founders and all the priests, sisters, and teachers who enabled thousands of students to fulfill their potential.
Alvin J. Schexnider, PhD is a retired university president. He attended Sacred Heart School in Lake Charles, Louisiana, from kindergarten to graduation in 1963. His paternal grandmother was a founding member of Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church.
